present invention relates to a rotary nozzle, especially one used for high pressure cleaning. The nozzle includes a propulsion ring that drives an inclined rotor body about its axis thereby causing a liquid to exit the rotary nozzle in a rotating jet.
nozzles that provide a high-pressure stream of cleaning fluid are used for a variety of cleaning applications. Many such systems implement a nozzle housing, with an inlet, an outlet, an internal housing chamber, and a rotor body disposed in the chamber at an incline. By connecting the inlet to an appropriate hose, a high-pressure liquid is introduced into the inlet, entering the chamber along a tangential path. The liquid flow causes the rotor body to rotate about the housing chamber, the side of the nozzle bearing along an interior side of the housing. The liquid exits the rotary nozzle through the outlet as a rotating jet. The jet is intended to assist the cleaning efficiency, avoiding spot treatment, and enhance uniformity.
Existing nozzles rely upon the force of swirling liquid in the housing chamber to create the desired rotating jet. The operation of these nozzles, however, depends upon the frictional force between the rotor body and the interior side of the housing. As the rotor body and housing begin to wear, the friction between the two surfaces changes. Accordingly, the same nozzle configuration may lead to significantly differing rotation speeds and impact levels owing to wear on the nozzle elements.
Further, as the surfaces exhibit deterioration, an increased level of friction between the two surfaces leads to a decreased startup speedxe2x80x94the time from the liquid first flowing into the nozzle to the time the rotating fluid jet reaches its maximum speed. Slow startup speeds can be damaging to the target being cleaned by the nozzle; a sluggish acceleration of rotation speed of the fluid jet can abrade the target. By focusing solely on the friction between the two surfaces, the prior art has inadequately addressed these and other shortcomings of existing rotary nozzles.
Furthermore, existing rotary nozzles provide insufficient control over the impactxe2x80x94the concentration of liquid in a specific location on the cleaning targetxe2x80x94and stream qualityxe2x80x94the precise placement of all the liquid particles in a uniform diameter on the cleaning targetxe2x80x94of their rotating jets. The impact a rotating jet has on its target is attributable to the flow rate of the liquid exiting the nozzle and the rotation speed of the liquid. Because of the aforementioned varying level of friction, prior rotary nozzles have provided only limited ability to determine and maintain the impact of their rotating jets. Similarly, control of the stream quality of these rotary nozzles has also been limited. The stream quality is considered to be the clarity of the water stream exiting the nozzle; the diameter restraint and uniformity of the rotating jet.
For these reasons, it is an object of the present invention to provide a rotary nozzle that does not rely solely on a high-pressure fluid to directly rotate the nozzle body. It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a rotary nozzle that effectively maintains a desired flow rate and rotation speed of the exiting rotating jet and enhances the stream quality of the rotating jet, which contributes to the cleaning efficiency of the rotary nozzle. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a maximized startup speed in a rotary nozzle and substantially maintain that startup speed over the life of the rotary nozzle.
A high-pressure rotary nozzle of the present invention includes a housing defining an internal chamber, the housing having a top end and a bottom end, the bottom end having an outlet. An endcap assembly is attached to the top end of the housing and defines an endcap bore. The endcap bore is essentially a liquid passage that runs through the center of the endcap assembly and opens into a drive orifice that is tangential to the endcap bore. The endcap assembly also includes a propulsion ring that is rotatably disposed in the endcap assembly about the endcap bore. A drive magnet is fixedly attached to the propulsion ring such that the drive magnet and the propulsion ring rotate together.
Inside the housing chamber, a rotor body having an internal rotor bore therethrough is rotatably disposed and extends longitudinally through the housing chamber. The rotor body is supported in a rotor seat, which is fixedly attached to the housing at the outlet. The rotor body is disposed in the housing chamber at an angle such that a bearing surface of the rotor body bears on an interior side of the housing. A receiver magnet is fixedly attached to the rotor body, such that rotation of the drive magnet produces rotation of the receiver magnet. The rotation of the receiver magnet causes the rotor body to rotate with respect to housing such that the liquid flowing through the internal rotor bore exits the outlet in a rotating jet.
In operation, a liquid is introduced into the endcap bore at a high pressure and exits through a drive insert orifice tangential to the endcap bore. As the liquid exits through the drive insert orifice, it strikes the propulsion ring, thereby propelling the propulsion ring to rotate at a high rate of speed, or RPM, relative to the housing. The drive magnet is thereby rotated at the same RPM as the propulsion ring. The liquid then travels past the propulsion ring in a swirling pattern.
The liquid flows in a circular and downward path through a water gap between the endcap assembly and the housing and enters the housing chamber. While continuing to swirl in the housing chamber, the liquid pervades the housing chamber, exerts the rotor body downward into the rotor seat, creating a seal, and enters the internal rotor bore. Both the force exerted on the receiver magnet by the drive magnet and the force of the swirling liquid cause the rotor body to rotate about the longitudinal axis of the rotary nozzle in the housing chamber. As the rotor body rotates around housing chamber, the bearing surface is in contact with an interior side of the housing. The liquid passes through the rotor body and exits through the nozzle outlet. The orbiting motion of the rotor body causes the liquid to exit the rotary nozzle in a rotating jet.
Importantly, the magnets propel the rotor body to rotate even when the bearing surfaces exhibit wear. Because the drive magnet and the propulsion ring operate independently from the rotor body, the drive magnet continues to rotate as long as the liquid moves through the rotary nozzle.
The impact that the liquid exiting the rotary nozzle has on its target may be controlled by manipulating various characteristics of the endcap assembly. For instance, the diameter of drive insert orifice affects the rate at which the liquid exits the endcap bore into the propulsion ring, which in turn affects the rotation speed of propulsion ring, ultimately affecting the flow rate at which the liquid exits the rotary nozzle. Similarly, the geometric characteristics of the propulsion ring, as well as its mass, affect the flow rate and rotation speed of the exiting liquid. By manipulating any of these characteristics, the present invention provides effective control and maintenance of the impact of the rotating jet. By providing such control and consistency in the rotating jet, the stream quality is also thereby enhanced.
The characteristics of the drive magnet and the receiver magnet can also be manipulated to control the rotating jet. By adjusting the strength of the magnetic charge on each magnet, the force exerted by the drive magnet on the receiver magnet can effectively be influenced. Similarly, the size, shapes, and locations of the magnets can be adjusted to affect the interaction between the two magnets.
Similarly, the width of the water gap through which the liquid passes from the propulsion ring into the housing chamber affects the rotation speed of the exiting liquid as well as the flow rate at which the liquid exits the rotary nozzle. The diameter of the internal rotor bore at the exit point from the rotor body and the diameter of the rotary nozzle outlet control the flow rate at which the liquid exits the nozzle.
Further, the width of the water gap affects the startup speed; maintaining a predetermined width ensures an enhanced startup speed that minimizes the damage caused to the target being cleaned by the nozzle owing to the rapid variation in rotation speed of the fluid jet. Each desired flow rate corresponds to a specific water gap width range that will maximize the startup speed.